Throughout this specification the use of the word “inventor” in singular form may be taken as reference to one (singular) inventor or more than one (plural) inventor of the present invention.
It is to be appreciated that any discussion of documents, devices, acts or knowledge in this specification is included to explain the context of the present invention. Further, the discussion throughout this specification comes about due to the realisation of the inventor and/or the identification of certain related art problems by the inventor. Moreover, any discussion of material such as documents, devices, acts or knowledge in this specification is included to explain the context of the invention in terms of the inventor's knowledge and experience and, accordingly, any such discussion should not be taken as an admission that any of the material forms part of the prior art base or the common general knowledge in the relevant art in Australia, or elsewhere, on or before the priority date of the disclosure and claims herein.
Generally, incorrect storage of form-fitting or delicate garments can reduce the lifespan of certain products, for example, underwire bras. Furthermore, storage of garments such as, lingerie, sleepwear, sports singlets and bathers can occupy relatively large amounts of space. Also, selection of garments can be made difficult due to storage in drawers or on shelves.
Hanging of sleeveless garments may be difficult as the angle of the hanger allows for movement of the garment off the hanger. Retrieval of a garment may be difficult if more than one garment is hanging on a hanger. Moreover, sets of garments are not easily stored together and it is difficult, if not impossible, to provide easy access or visibility in display for sets of garments.
Delicate underwear garments and garments that are difficult to hang have traditionally been stored in drawers, in boxes or, on shelves. Hangers have been designed with ‘peg’ attachments to overcome this. Whilst it provided an alternative to drawer storage, the problem with the ‘peg’ hanger is that garments cannot easily be hung or retrieved without taking the hanger from the rail and placing it on a flat surface. Also, with frequent use, the pegs may snap off. Visibility of the desired garment(s) is also limited with this method. Storing delicate garments in boxes in drawers reduces visibility for selection and increases storage space required. Garments tend to tangle and slip off when stored on a conventional hanger with the hook, making the retrieval and hanging process cumbersome. Such hangers certainly do not allow for the storage of sets of garments. Of course the conventional hooked hanger can provide reduced storage space and improve visibility for selection, but does not allow for the storage of underwear sets or swimwear, for instance. If a conventional or peg hanger is used to store sets of garments, then when retrieving a single garment item, it may lead to tangling the other garments or having to take them off to retrieve the desired article. Furthermore, it is difficult to retrieve the desired article without having to take the hanger off the rail that supports the hanger.
US 2008/0308511 in the name of Angel D. Ruelas addresses a problem pertaining specifically to bras being typically stored in drawers or hung from door knobs or conventional coat hangers. Drawer storage is noted to be often damaging to the padding or under wires, and door knob or coat hanger storage is noted as being unsightly and unorganised. The solution offered by Ruelas is a device specifically for hanging bras and comprises the following features:
a conventional fixed coat hanger type hook centrally attached to the top of a horizontal beam;
a vertical support attached to the bottom of the horizontal beam extending downward;
additional horizontal beams distributed along the vertical support (as needed);
hooks, smaller than the centrally attached top hook, are spaced along each of the horizontal beams allowing for storage of one bra per hook.
However, Ruelas does not address the issues of hanging sleeveless garments or hanging sets of garments with easy access or visibility in display.
Another prior art device is disclosed by US 2009/0078728 (Snyder) and comprises a garment hanging system having a sheet secured to a clothes hanger by folding the sheet over the horizontal portion of a conventional hanger and securing itself with Velcro™ fastenings. Hooks are situated in the sheet for attaching garments thereto. The Snyder device however, is a complicated multi-component design and may be susceptible to having the sheet and fastenings collect dust, grime or become otherwise soiled and require similar cleaning as would other fabric items.